Thesaurus results for HEADSMAN

headsman

noun

Definition of headsman

as in executioner

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of headsman There’s dungeons or the headsman’s block for someone with that many secrets to spill. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Two other men, subjects of excellent Holbein drawings in the show, would keep appointments with the headsman. — Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2022 Once upon a time, the queen could have sent rebels to the Tower and the headsman’s block, even relatives—especially relatives. — Matt Seaton, The New York Review of Books, 9 Mar. 2021 The British prime minister has assembled a trio of headsmen to sever Britain from the mainland. — Vanityfair.com, VanityFair.com, 22 Mar. 2017 Several other leading figures of the period ended their days on the executioner’s block, including the unhappy Comte de Chalais, whose headsman bungled the job and ended up frantically chopping away at his screaming victim with a small hatchet. — David A. Bell, Foreign Affairs, 1 Mar. 2012

Recent Examples of Synonyms for headsman

Noun

An enthusiastic executioner DeSantis is Florida’s most enthusiastic executioner, having put 46 men to death.

— Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026
Rather, the state may employ executioners with limited technical expertise and often no experience in basic anatomy or medical care.

— Dr. Jacob Appel, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of executioner

Noun

The former cop also claimed to have found a hangman’s noose under Epstein’s mattress.

— Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 16 June 2026
Even-handed, compassionate, and as suffocatingly tense as a hangman's noose, Munich is Spielberg's most underrated film.

— Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly, 13 June 2026

Definition of hangman

Noun

Further, the claim that the executor has withheld or ‘cut’ payments is a complete fabrication.

— Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 8 Nov. 2026
Michael’s former entertainment attorney John Branca (who was rehired eight days before Michael’s death) and the music executive John McClain were named co-executors of the estate, per a 2002 will.

— Claudia Rosenbaum, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of executor

Noun

Mailer’s masterpiece chronicles the true story of Gilmore, a cold-blooded murderer who, after being tried and convicted for killing two men in Utah, insisted on being executed for his crimes.

— Justin Kroll, Deadline, 10 Nov. 2026
More than 40 years later, no efforts have been made to prosecute or extradite the presumptive murderers.

— David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of murderer

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“Headsman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headsman. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of headsman

noun

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